John Kuntz / The Plain DealerA sprained right knee has kept Montario Hardesty out of the preseason so far, but it hasn't removed him from the Browns' plans for the regular season.

BEREA, Ohio -- Montario Hardesty could still be ready for the opener Sept. 12 in Tampa, even though the Browns' rookie running back has missed all of training camp and most likely will skip Saturday's dress rehearsal game in Detroit with a sprained right knee.

"Yes, I would him expect him to [be ready for the season]," said coach Eric Mangini. "There's been no setback. Based on the plan that we had and the progress that he has made, my anticipation is that he'll be practicing again in the near future and ideally playing in the opener."

He said Hardesty might get some practice reps late this week, "but it's subject to change."

Hardesty is expected to sit out Saturday's game, in which starters normally play through the third quarter. For the final preseason game Sept. 2 against the Bears, starters usually only play a series or two, but the Browns are hoping it's a chance to get Hardesty some live action before the season begins.

Hardesty suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament on the same knee as a freshman in 2005 and had it drained last season. But he didn't miss any games in 2009, rushing for 1,345 yards and 13 TDs and catching 25 passes for 302 yards. With Hardesty out, Peyton Hillis is leading the team with 54 yards on 14 carries and Jerome Harrison is second with 38 yards on 12 carries.

Pashos, Lauvao close: Right tackle Tony Pashos, who's missed the first two exhibition games with a right shoulder injury, said he expects to practice Tuesday. Mangini also said he expects him to play Saturday in Detroit. John St. Clairstarted at right tackle vs. the Rams.

As for rookie right guard Shawn Lauvao, who went back home to Hawaii for an undisclosed personal reason, Mangini said he could be back Monday morning.

"But again, this is sort of a unique situation," said Mangini. "That's the tentative plan right now."

Ed Suba Jr. / Akron Beacon-JournalJosh Cribbs was one of the victims of sloppy ballhandling on Saturday, as he lost this fumble during the Browns' ragged first quarter.

Not Mr. Sunshine: Mangini was still so miffed Sunday about Saturday's fumbles and rain-related mistakes that he warned the players they will practice outside in inclement weather any chance they get.

"For the time being, we could rent out the indoor facility for a car show, because we are not going in there any time soon," he said. "We need to be able to play in the weather. It's going to be hot in Tampa, it's going to be cold here. We are going to have snow, we are going to have wind, we are going to have all of those things and it affects the game. It affects the footing, it affects the ball handling, it affects the path of the ball and those are things that we need to be able to play through and be successful at playing through."

Not so special: Mangini was particularly perturbed by the poor special teams play, which included two fumbled punts and a mishandled kickoff return.

"We had poor decisions by our returners throughout the course of the night," he said. "Poor ball security, two fumbles on punts and a mishandled kickoff. It kills you.

"I thought the kickoff coverage overall was good and I thought we got better push on our field goal block team. There were some positives, but I thought as a group collectively, it was one of our least-impressive performances since we have been here in an area that we have been good at."

No surprise, turnovers are key: The Browns finished the game minus-five in turnover differential.

"In the last five years, one team has won a game out of 41 games when they've been minus-five or worse giveaway-takeaway ratio," Mangini said. "You might as well play the Powerball at that point because you've got no chance of winning. The other thing is self-inflicted wounds, penalties. Defensively, to have three penalties on third down is like a turnover. You can't survive those things."

McCoy must learn: Mangini said rookie quarterback Colt McCoy, who currently has a dismal 9.7 rating, must learn to come in off the bench and play well.

"It's something Colt is really learning, because he went from getting all of the reps at Texas to maybe getting a few reps here or getting in the game for a few plays. That's different for him."

McCoy has completed five of 12 attempts for 25 yards, with no TDs and two interceptions. Still, Mangini has been impressed with McCoy trying to get better.

"He doesn't get flustered by it, he has done a nice job with Jake [Delhomme] and Seneca [Wallace], seeking out their guidance," he said. "It's a hard transition."

Hillis helping: Hillis leads the team in receiving yards as well as rushing, with 46 on five catches.

"He catches the ball well," said Mangini. "That's going to be one of his roles. He can play fullback, he can play on special teams, he can play on third down, he's a tough, physical guy with the ball, and that's the guy that we were looking for when we made the trade [with Denver]."

Follow Us

cleveland.com is powered by Plain Dealer Publishing Co. and Northeast Ohio Media Group. All rights reserved (About Us).The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Northeast Ohio Media Group LLC.